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Odds and Ends: LaRue, Rogers, Hunter

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Some random rumorage before I shut it down for the evening…

Wood On BoSox Radar

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In Nick Cafardo’s column in the Boston Globe today, he mentions that Kerry Wood is on Sox’s radar. He says they envision him as the guy they were looking for when they traded for Eric Gagne on July 31. Unfortunately, this may not jibe with Wood’s intentions. As Tim has discussed here, he might be looking to remain as a starter, though that would limit the teams that are interested in him. Presumably, given his injury history and temporary success as a reliever in ’07, more teams would line up to have Wood in their bullpens.

The Cubs, who could use Wood either as a starter or a reliever — even a closer — remain the front runners. Other teams with a noted interest include the Reds, the Rangers, and the Yankees.

Cafardo also offers up the standard-issue rumors regarding Matt Clement (Padres or Royals), Bartolo Colon (Giants, Cubs, White Sox, Phillies), and Kris Benson ("drawing a lot of interest"). He also mentions the Tigers in connection with Livan Hernandez, Carlos Silva, and obviously Kenny Rogers. He also notes that without Joel Zumaya, the team might be looking at Eric Gagne.

And then there’s the recycled Miguel Cabrera talks. Cafardo describes the situation as we’ve all known it for some time now (guess what…Angels and Dodgers!).

Joe Pawlikowski is co-author of River Ave. Blues.

Odds and Ends: Kuroda, Hunter, Crede

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What’d I miss recently?  Here are some odds and ends.

  • The Tigers have expressed interest in Hiroki Kuroda.  They join the Phillies, Mariners, Dodgers, Royals, Rangers, Cubs, and Mets in that pursuit.
  • 10 teams are interested in Aaron Rowand!  That’s almost 1/3 of all baseball teams!
  • Torii Hunter is after a seven-year deal.  Most feel he’s saying that because he wants six.  Clever!
  • The Twins are taking a look at Tony Clark as a cheap DH option.  He’s supposedly looking for something like two years, $4MM and more playing time.  This would be a very Twins-like signing. 
  • T.R. Sullivan has a Rangers update.  Apparently Jon Daniels is checking in on big names like Johan Santana, Erik Bedard, and Miguel Cabrera.  More realistically Daniels may go out to Japan for players such as Kosuke Fukudome and Hiroki Kuroda (we knew that already).  We also knew the Rangers had Kerry Wood and Eric Gagne on their radar.  Sullivan speculates that Scott Linebrink and LaTroy Hawkins could also be in the mix.
  • Barry Rozner expects Joe Crede to be traded. It seems like Crede is a Plan B or C for a lot of teams and Kenny Williams may have to wait til a few dominoes fall first. 

Kenny Rogers Fires Scott Boras

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Quick note from Danny Knobler: free agent starter Kenny Rogers has fired Scott Boras, and reiterated that the Tigers are his first priority.  Not a good offseason so far for Boras.

Rogers will represent himself.  Jason Beck says Rogers received two contract offers through Boras from the Tigers and they were declined.  I imagine now they’ll get something done soon.   

Tigers Interested In Livan Hernandez

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According to Jon Paul Morosi, the Tigers are interested in free agent starter Livan Hernandez.  Livan, of course, has connections with Jim Leyland, Gary Sheffield, and Edgar Renteria from his Marlins days.

The Tigers are a very well-run team but signing Hernandez seems like a bad idea.  He’ll be 33 if February, and that’s giving him the benefit of the doubt.  While he is durable, Livan is a career National Leaguer who posted a 1.14 K/BB ratio last year.  You have to figure at minimum he’d want three years and $21MM.  The Tigers can afford it, but that doesn’t mean it’s wise.

The Tigers hope to re-sign Kenny Rogers.  Failing that, they’ve got Hernandez, Carlos Silva, and Dontrelle Willis on the radar.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Cordero, Livan, Jenkins

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Somehow, I missed a Ken Rosenthal column.  This thing is already 14 hours old.  I’m slipping.

  • A Mystery Team has already made a four-year offer to Francisco Cordero.  We know the Brewers made an offer on Monday but Rosenthal may be referring to another club.
  • Rosenthal suggests Scott Linebrink could be reunited with Bruce Bochy to become the Giants’ closer.  It’s known that the Astros already have an offer out to Linebrink.
  • Teams interested in Geoff Jenkins: the Cubs, Padres, Giants, Rangers, and Royals.  Several of those are new to me.
  • The Tigers’ payroll is expected to exceed $115MM.  Time to head over to Cot’s and do some math.  By my count the Tigers are around $105MM right now (includes some arbitration guesses).  That leaves room for one starting pitcher signing, be it Kenny Rogers, Carlos Silva, or whoever.
  • The Cardinals, Astros, and Mets have their eye on Livan Hernandez.  Mets’ management is divided on signing him, since he’s a back-rotation guy.
  • Rosenthal believes the Reds could shop Joey Votto or Josh Hamilton a year from now in hopes of acquiring starting pitching.
  • Tony Clark is gaining in popularity as a cheap power source.  He might be looking at two years, $4MM plus more playing time.

Cubs Send $2MM To Tigers With Jones

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Turns out the Cubs added a nice bonus for the Tigers to take Jacque Jones off their hands: $2MM in cash.  So let’s see here.  Omar Infante will be up around $1.5MM in ’08, and the Cubs tossed in $2MM.  Jones makes $5MM in ’08, though I’m not sure which team pays out the final chunk of his $4MM bonus.  But I think it’s fair to say that this "salary dump" saved the Cubs about $1.5MM.  The Tigers got Jones pretty cheaply.

So the Cubs didn’t clear much payroll, but they do have a clear vacancy in right field now.  Kosuke Fukudome, as a left-handed hitting right fielder, is a perfect fit.  I think the Cubs are on the right track with that one.  Other considerations could include Ryan Church or J.D. Drew, in my opinion.

Gordon Wittenmyer notes in the above-linked article that the next order of business for Jim Hendry is re-signing Kerry Wood.  This will be a good test of Wood’s loyalty, as some team is liable to come in with some kind of two-year, $15MM type offer.

Molony’s Latest: Glavine, Fukudome, Percival

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MLB.com’s Jim Molony has a new column up with some solid info.

  • Molony says Tom Glavine will wait about a week and then announce he’ll pitch for the Braves in ’08.  It would probably be for $8-9MM for ’08 with a mutual option for ’09.
  • Molony suggests that the Phillies might go after Kosuke Fukudome, or lesser options like Brad Wilkerson or Trot Nixon.
  • Eight teams are after Troy Percival, four of which consider him an option at closer.  The Tigers aren’t involved as of yet.  Maybe the Cubs are in the mix?  Also a reader just emailed me to tell me that 790 The Sports Animal in Houston says the Astros are in on Percival.

Tigers Re-Sign Todd Jones

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According to Baseball Digest Daily, the Tigers have re-signed closer Todd Jones on one-year deal for $7MM.  Seems a little pricey.  The Tigers’ need for a reliever was heightened with the loss of Joel Zumaya.

Options remain plentiful for teams in search of a closer – check out the updated list here.  The Orioles, Rays, Rangers, Astros, Brewers, and Giants may all be in the hunt for a closer this winter.

Jacque Jones Traded For Omar Infante

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UPDATE: The deal is done; the Tigers also get cash considerations.

According to Jon Paul Morosi of the Detroit Free Press, the Tigers and Cubs are finalizing a Jacque Jones for Omar Infante swap.  ESPN 1000’s Bruce Levine called this one when no one else had it.

The Tigers would use Jones in left field, maybe sitting him against lefties in favor of Ryan Raburn.  Jones played pretty solid center field defense for the Cubs last year; his ability to play that position was actually making him look like an asset at $5MM in ’08.  The Cubs may be ready to try Felix Pie in center next year, though they have been connected to Mike Cameron.  Many consider the trade of Jones to be a salary dump.  When the Cubs tried to trade him to the Marlins they were set to pay almost all of Jones’ salary.

Infante has shown flashes of offensive ability with the Tigers, but hasn’t hit for the most part.  It would be interesting if the Cubs tried the 26 year-old at shortstop.  He was once a top prospect, beginning 2003 as the Tigers’ starting shortstop at age 21.  He wasn’t up to the task, getting benched by Alan Trammell for lack of hustle before being sent down.  His arm strength as a shortstop has been questioned, and he’s battled through shoulder and other injuries.  Infante may be able to dabble in center field, aside from second base and shortstop.  Or the Cubs could flip him to another team. 

In other Tigers news, Danny Knobler says the team has stepped up their efforts to re-sign Todd Jones before midnight.  At that point Jones would be able to negotiate with other teams.

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